Deidra Lemoine Valenzuela is a PhD student in the Public Health Department. She holds a B.A in Public Health from UC Merced and an MPH in Infectious Disease and Vaccinology from UC Berkeley. Her master’s thesis focused on modeling the potential spread of Japanese Encephalitis virus in California via port introductions. Prior to her doctoral studies, Deidra served as an arboviral disease research associate in the Viral and Rickettsial Disease Laboratory at the California Department of Public Health, where she coordinated annual West Nile virus testing seasons and pioneered the first locally acquired dengue surveillance program in the state. Her research at UC Merced examines the social epidemiology of infectious diseases, with a focus on arboviral diseases.
